Arceus and the Fate of the World
by SimonKilnsworth
Summary: Sometimes, when you try to be a source of change, you get exactly what you wanted...
1. Like the Wind

**Hello, and welcome to the story… that got me started writing. 10 long years ago, a freshman in high school read a fan fiction whose premise he loved but execution left him wanting, and so he decided to try and do it better. But this 14 year old didn't understand what the meaning of the word effort was, and so he quit. Over the years, though, this story has stuck with me, and I've told myself over and over that I would start it up again when I felt like I was in a place where I wouldn't just drop it again. And, well, I've been writing for almost 4 years now, so I think that's pretty good evidence that I'm gonna keep at it.**

**This story is very much a product of my 14 year old mind filtered through my 24 year old self. As such, this story will include a couple things that may turn people off of it, but I'm leaving it in to honor the original intentions I had meant for it (those I can actually remember at this point).**

**I don't expect any of the people who have read the old version of this to read this one, nor do I think anyone reading this version should go read the old version because… yikes, but I'm gonna keep them up at least until I get further than them with this because why not? So if you really wanna see all of that unedited cringe-y goodness, title's below.**

**I regret nothing.**

**Disclaimer: since I came up with most of this story as it will sit now in 2010 anything past gen 4 won't really be included until way later, just to make it so I don't need to change like a third the plot.**

**Also trigger warning: attempted suicide.**

**Have fun!**

* * *

Arceus and the Fate of the World

By: A Guy Who Stole the Name of a Character in this Story

"_Power without a purpose is meaningless and worthless.  
A purpose that is firm can change the impossible to the possible."_

_-Lord Deus, Asura's Wrath_

This world is cruel. It has no bias, and it picks no favorites. From the moment of birth, all creatures must struggle against its will and the will of all other creatures that live. People take advantage, and people are taken advantage of, and the world does not care. It doesn't care if someone cheats; it does not care if someone lies, wins, loses, kills, or is killed. This is world meant for the hardened; for those whose will is strong enough to do what must be done to succeed.

But sometimes… there comes someone who does care – someone willing to use their strength not to push up themselves, but to help pull up others. And those are the ones that will truly change everything.

Deep within a forest, a young Eevee has learned the true nature of this world. He stumbles through the brush in search of the hollowed tree he had used for shelter the night before. This tree was special because it was unclaimed. The Eevee had learned quickly what happened if he tried to encroach on another's territory, and what signs to look for so it wouldn't happen again.

The Eevee had lost track of how long it had spent its nights exposed; to be woken by rain, predators, or those who attacked simply because they viewed him as a threat. When the small Pokémon had found the tree, he knew a joy he thought he'd forgotten. That night it had rained and he did not care. It was a small victory, but a powerful one.

He hadn't wanted to leave that place of safety, but he had other needs. There was no food or water within sight of the tree, so the Eevee was forced to enter this cruel world once more.

The Eevee became lost not long after, his sense of direction never having a chance to fully develop. Everything looked the same in the forest. He had learned to use his sense of smell to keep him away from any serious danger, but that was all.

He lost hope as he lost the light, the sun that filtered down to him slowly fading to night. It had to be close. He couldn't have wandered that far away from it. Yet it was nowhere to be seen.

It was all the fault of that human.

The Eevee despised humans. They were selfish and cruel just like this world. One of them had almost snuck up on the Eevee while he was drinking at a stream he found, and he'd had to run and hide. If it wasn't for them, he would already be back in his tree. If it wasn't for them, he wouldn't have been in the forest at all.

There was little light left now. Soon the nighttime predators would be on the move and it would be too dangerous out in the open. Regretfully, the Eevee started looking for a different shelter. His fear doubled by the second as he searched. Any moment, a well-concealed Pokémon could spring out of a tree or hole in the ground and he would be able to do nothing about it. Normally the Eevee would not dare approach any of these places, but he didn't want to leave himself exposed again, not after finally relearning what safety felt like.

Eventually he came upon a small depression covered by a fallen tree and decided it would do. Before he could inspect it fully to see if it was safe and unoccupied, a loud crack rang through the forest followed by a deep growl. The startled Eevee took no chances and dived under the tree. He adopted a technique he saw used by another Pokémon to hide from predators and covered himself in the dirt that was beneath the tree to mask his scent. That monster had chased after him instead of the Pokémon that had camouflaged themselves like that that day, so he knew it would work.

Another crack made the night seem to freeze. Something was close.

The Eevee feared going to sleep in case he needed to quickly get away. The shelter was not as good has his tree; a big Pokémon could reach under the tree and grab him with ease if they smelled him, but it was better that being up above.

He laid there for what felt like the whole night, afraid he would be ripped out from under the tree any second, but no other sound came that night, beyond the ever-present chirp of Nincada, and the croaks of Politoeds and Croagunks. Eventually, though, his exhaustion beat out his instincts and he drifted off to sleep.

.

The Eevee felt warmth – a warmth he had almost forgotten: the warmth of curling up close to the fireplace, surrounded by his humans – his family. And for a moment he was back there, happily resting after spending the day running around the yard, playing with them and the toys they had gotten for him. But then, the fire went dark, and he heard his family arguing in the other room, just like they were on that day. In the corner of his mind, he could hear the whimpers of a little girl trying desperately to stop crying for fear that she would be next. Then the plates started smashing against floor, and the Eevee felt the familiar dread seep back into him, and the Eevee remembered he was not home and the warmth he knew was nothing more than a lie…

.

A pain in his side woke the Eevee. At first his mind linked it to the dream, as the last thing he had felt before losing his old life, but this pain persisted, and quickly got worse.

As his eyes shot open, the Eevee saw an even worse nightmare standing over him. It was a Skorupi, and it definitely looked like a Pokémon trying to protect its home. He knew he hadn't been careful enough.

The Eevee scrambled out from under the tree and tried to run away as fast as he could, but he stumbled to the ground almost as soon as he got out, his whole body numb. He tried to get back up but his body wouldn't listen at all. A skittering from behind told him his attacker had followed him out from his hole. Fear took over the young Eevee. He whimpered for mercy and for help that he knew wouldn't come. The abandoned Eevee felt another pressure in his side, and then searing pain before he blacked out.

.

The Eevee woke to the sound of voices. At first he thought he was simply imagining it, but soon he began to understand the words.

"… still don't understand why we're even in this forest," one was saying.

Then a different voice, "There are still a couple days before our meet-up. I thought we could use this time to explore."

Then the first voice again, "We could have explored the _city_, not the middle of nowhere."

The Eevee didn't know what they were talking about, nor did he care; his head felt like it had been crushed under a rock. Black spots filled his vision as he opened his eyes. He could only make out that it was still dark.

The second voice spoke again, "Team Rocket doesn't hide out in cities anymore."

The Eevee finally recognized who was talking: humans. Snapping to full alert, he immediately tried to get away but his strength still failed him and he collapsed again before he could even make it to his feet.

"Looks like he's awake," he heard one of the humans say as his head swam. He tried to think of a way to escape. Pulling his head up, all he saw was a dark-haired human walking over to him. A small fire lit him from behind, obscuring most of his face.

"Stay away from me!" the Eevee shouted in defiance to the inevitable. It was too late. He had been captured. It was all going to happen again.

The human paused for a second but kept coming closer, slower now.

"It's okay," he said, "I'm not gonna hurt you."

"I said stay back!" the Eevee screamed. He knew full well the human couldn't understand him, but maybe he could at least get the point across.

That time, the human stopped. He let out a breath and got down on his knees. "Easy little guy." The human's voice was deep and sounded almost soothing, but the Eevee would not fall for that again. "If you work yourself up like that you may not make it this time," he went on. "You were in a pretty bad way when we found you. I didn't think I'd have enough antidote for a bit."

The Eevee ignored the human and used everything it had left to try to get to his feet again. "I won't listen to you," he said weakly. "You just saved me so you can capture me and force me to do things I don't want to do, and then you're going to leave me to die just like they did." He felt tears welling up in his eyes, and then is front legs collapsed. Everything suddenly hurt worse than it did when the Skorupi stung him.

"He thinks you're going to capture him," the other voice he'd heard spoke up.

The Eevee had forgotten about them. Had the human understood him?

"I'll deal with that later," the first human answered, "just calm him down before he kills himself."

The Eevee didn't like the sound of that. He tried to stand again, but suddenly he was exhausted. The pain faded away and so did his fear, and he drifted to sleep once again.

.

When the Eevee woke up next the sun was on his face, and with the light he could see that he was in a clearing. Getting his bearings, he looked around to see that the human from before was no longer there. Instead there was another Pokémon sitting by a small campfire: a Gardevoir.

The Eevee sat up. He still felt dizzy and sore all over, but he was markedly better than he had been the night before. He watched the other Pokémon curiously. She hadn't reacted to him moving.

He knew he should try to run again but for some reason he felt he knew this Gardevoir wouldn't harm him. He wasn't sure where it came from. Maybe he could get some answers from her instead.

"Feeling better?" she asked just as he was about to speak up, although it didn't really sound like a question. The Eevee recognized the voice as the other from the night before. There was just one human then, but that meant that this Gardevoir was probably his and that was just as bad. Still, he had the feeling he could trust her.

"What do you want from me?" the Eevee demanded. "Where did that human go?"

The Gardevoir gave him the most genuine smile he had ever seen and said, "We don't want anything from you. You were hurt, so we saved you. That's all there is to it. And when you're all better, you're free to go. As for where _he _went, keeping track of him is harder than guessing where an electron will be in three seconds."

The Eevee tilted his head to the side. "A what?"

"Never mind," she giggled. She stood up and put some berries in front of him. "Here, I know you're hungry. These will help you get some of your strength back."

The Eevee eyed them warily for a moment, but he was starving and could not think of a good reason to refuse. It was more food than he'd seen in days.

As the young Eevee satiated his hunger, the human reappeared.

"Has our guest woken up yet?" he said to the Gardevoir. She nodded and the human knelt in front of him again. "How are you doing?" he asked.

The Eevee remained silent. The berries had done what the Gardevoir had said, and he felt ready to escape if the human tried to get any closer. Luckily he stayed where he was, letting out a breath and dropping his head. "Alright let's start over. I'm Rush and this is Anna." He gestured to the Gardevoir. "How about you, do you have a name?"

"Like you care," the Eevee mumbled.

"I _do_ care," the man responded surprisingly. Did this human could understand him?

The Eevee looked up at the human again. Now that it was light and he could see him better, he saw that his hair was so dark it was nearly black. His blue eyes had an intensity to them he had never seen before, but it was softened by his smile. He wore the same blue pants he'd seen many humans wearing and a grey shirt with the parts that covered his arms pushed halfway up them.

"When I first saw you at that river I knew you seemed out of place," he continued. The Eevee's eyes narrowed. "At first I just wondered if you'd be okay, but as fortune would have it our paths crossed again." The human sat next to his Gardevoir by the fire. "Now, I can't and won't force you to do anything, but after the mess we got you out of last night, I'd like to at least make sure that you're well enough that it won't happen again."

The Eevee glared at Rush. This was the human from yesterday. It had been his fault he had gotten hurt and he didn't even realize it. And now he was just trying to gain his trust.

"You had a home at one point, didn't you? A family?"

The human's words caught him off guard and his expression must have given away the answer.

"They abandoned you out here. Without even thinking about what might happen. I hate people like that: people who mess with others' lives and think it's okay just because it doesn't directly affect them."

"How do you know all of that?" the Eevee questioned, angry but also on the verge of tears. He didn't want to think about any of that ever again.

Rush shrugged, "Just a guess," he said and stood up. "Well, Anna and I have some stuff to do. You'll be safe here so don't go running off. I want to be sure you're back at one hundred present. Then you're free to do whatever you like." And with that, they disappeared before the Eevee could say another word.

Confused and alone again, the Eevee tried to figure out what to do. He knew he should run, but as he looked at the forest around him his fear kept him rooted near the dying fire pit. He almost wished that the human would come back.

Rush: the young Eevee did not know what to make of him. If he had wanted to capture him, wouldn't he have done by now? But he said nothing on the topic; he only wanted to make sure he was okay. No, humans do nothing but lie and this one would prove to be no different. He still felt weak, so the Eevee decided that as soon as he was able he would try to get away, but not back into the forest, he need to find a way out that as well. They seemed to know; they had said something about a city, he remembered. Maybe they would be willing to tell him how to get out of there.

With his belly full, the last of his pain began to fade and soon his exhaustion took him again as he watched the dying flames.

.

When he woke again, it was night once more and the fire was rekindled. The human and the Gardevoir had returned. They were sitting by the fire on either side of him. Uncomfortable by their proximity, the Eevee stood to try and move away.

"Don't move," Rush said. He reached out and gently pushed the Eevee back to the ground, but his voice held none of the same gentleness. He knew it; he knew they wouldn't let him get away. The Eevee yelped in protest and started to struggle until he looked up and saw the human's face.

He wasn't looking at him. He was staring out into the forest as if he was waiting for something he knew would be there. His next words confirmed this, "We may have company soon."

Just then, as if waiting to be introduced, a Luxray crept into the clearing exactly where Rush was looking. Its large, limber form looked ready for a fight. It wasn't the human's Pokémon, then, or any others'.

Another Luxray appeared to its left, and then another to its right, and then more.

They were surrounded.

The human and his Pokémon stood up. The Eevee wondered what they were doing. They weren't going to try to fight them, were they? No, that would be insane.

They were going to run. That's why the human didn't want him to move, so they could use him as a distraction to get away.

"Looks like they decided to be ballsy after all," the human said, "Anna, give them a warning."

Suddenly the Luxray that had gotten the closest yelped and sprung back as if it had been struck and the ones near it backed up as well, but they didn't get scared off.

The ones behind them saw their opening and lunged at them. The small Pokémon closed his eyes and waited for pain that never came. He looked up to see the Luxrays in heaps against the nearby trees. The remaining members of the pack closed the gaps and began to spark in anger.

"Guess they're not gonna give up," Rush said.

The Gardevoir took a step away from the fire. The Luxray held their ground. "Shall I show them what they're up against?" she asked.

The Eevee was surprised to hear the human chuckle. "Be my guest," he said, and he sat back down.

The Eevee looked back and forth between the two. So they really were going to try to fight them. They _were_ crazy! There were at least ten of them left. They stood no chance against them all.

But, he realized, that could work in his favor. He could use them for a chance to escape himself. He just needed to wait for the right moment, maybe once they were able to take down the Gardevoir. That wouldn't take long. What could she do against so many? And the human getting eaten would distract the rest as he ran away.

The Eevee waited for his chance, watching the Gardevoir closely. The meek-looking Pokémon adopted a casual fighting stance, staring at the Luxray directly in front of her and waiting for it to make the first move. But one to her left decided to move first. The Eevee readied to move, thinking its chance had come sooner than he'd thought, but almost faster than he could see the Gardevoir dodged the canine and kicked it back into the tree line hard enough to cause a loud crack as the wood broke.

Not giving her the chance to recover, two more lunged. Anna used the follow through of the kick to spin herself back around and she grabbed one of the Luxray by the neck with one hand as her other became surrounded by flame. Then she slammed her fist into the Luxray, sending it flying into the other one.

The rest of the Luxray still standing loosed a thunderbolt at her in unison, but just before they hit the Gardevoir moved back faster than the Eevee could blink.

The Gardevoir held her hand out in front of her until a light blipped from her palm then she pulled her arm in as if pulling on a rope. The remaining Luxray suddenly soared through the air towards her, and just before they were upon her she pushed out with both arms, sending them all flying.

The Eevee was amazed by her power, but he shook himself out of his trance realizing that this was his chance to get away. He looked to the human who had his eyes on the Gardevoir's back then quickly bolted for the spot where the forest looked thinnest. He made it there without anyone noticing.

He did it, he thought to himself as he sprinted away from that madness. He was free of the human. Now all he had to do was find a place to hide for the night then he could find a way out of that hellish forest in the morning. It was a shame he couldn't ask the human for a way out, but he wasn't sure he would have been able to trust it anyway, so all the same.

Suddenly a shadow blocked his path, and the Eevee's heart sank. It was another Luxray, one of the pack that must have stayed back for when their pray tried to escape.

The Eevee, terrified, tried to double back but the canine was in front of him again before he even finished turning around. The young Eevee was then frozen in place with fear. There was nothing he could do. The Luxray almost seemed to smile as a shadow formed around its front claws. The Eevee closed his eyes to his inevitable death. He heard the sound of the Luxray's claws hit flesh but he felt nothing. He waited for pain but it didn't come. Once more, the Eevee slowly opened its eyes and saw another shadow in front of him, but this wasn't another Luxray, it was the human.

He had the Luxray by the throat, his forearm covered in blood-soaked claw marks. The Eevee almost didn't believe it. Had this human really taken the hit for him? The Luxray's fur began to ark with electricity.

"Oh no you don't!" the human growled. Before the Luxray could do anything, he slammed it to the ground and it hit with a yelp.

Instead of getting back up and attacking again, the Luxray ran off and disappeared. But it wasn't because of the human. The Gardevoir had come up behind them.

"Rush, are you alright?" she asked, worried.

Rush looked at his arm then to the Eevee and shrugged. "More or less." He smiled at his Gardevoir, trying to seem like it was no big deal, but she wouldn't be fooled. She took his arm and started to drag him back to the campsite. "Ow! Alright Anna, stop please," he said in pain.

The Eevee was left in the silence of the forest, once more confused and stunned by everything that had happened. They didn't come back for him, and nothing else jumped out to attack. Was that really the end of it then?

He looked backed in the direction the Luxray had run and rethought his decision to return to the forest. Anywhere was better than there, even if it was a human's camp. Besides, the young Eevee was beginning to think that not all of them were the same.

.

As he returned to the clearing, the Eevee saw the Gardevoir wrapping bandages around the human's arm while he let the occasional pained squint sneak through his otherwise calm expression. The Eevee approached with caution, unsure of what he was doing. The human looked his way and smiled.

"Hey little guy. That was exciting, wasn't it?"

In response, his Gardevoir started wrapping tighter, making him flinch.

The Eevee wasn't sure how to respond. He wanted to apologize, to thank them, to yell at them, question their sanity, but he couldn't think of where to begin.

"Blaze," he said after some thought.

"Hmm?" the human responded.

"That's what my family called me, Blaze, because I always liked being close to fire."

The Gardevoir finished, and reluctantly gave him permission to get up. Rush walked over to Blaze and sat down. "Do you like that name?" he asked.

"Yeah," Blaze said, nodding.

Rush nodded back. "Alright, Blaze it is." He got back up and went over to the fire to try to breathe some life back into it. The night's events had left it little more than a scattered pile of half-living embers.

Blaze stood there, confused. He wasn't sure what he had expected, but they were just acting like this was an everyday occurrence for them. He had expected them to mad at him at least for running off and getting Rush hurt, but they said nothing.

"So… what now?" he asked.

"Now," the Gardevoir growled, putting the remaining bandages back in a pack, "Rush is going rest, and then he's going to go to the hospital tomorrow to make sure his arm doesn't get infected." She seemed angrier her human than anyone else.

"I'm fine, Anna," Rush told her.

"_You_ don't get to make that decision," she replied.

"Um… thank you," Blaze said meekly before an argument could break out. "You saved me twice, and I don't even understand why you did it."

"Don't worry about it," Rush told him. "I did it because I was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time and because I wanted to. You don't owe us anything if that's what you're thinking. You're free to go now that you're on your feet."

"Wait," Blaze said before he could think. "I… I don't want to go back there…"

Rush stopped mending the fire and straightened. "Okay," he said, "what do you want?"

"I want to get out of here," he said honestly.

"Well the edge of the forest is about a half mile west. You could probably make it there with little trouble before afternoon if you set out after breakfast tomorrow."

"No!" he jumped. What was he doing? "I… I want to come with you." His own words caught him off guard. He hadn't even realized he was going to say them until he did, but they rang true in his own head, so he didn't backpedal on them.

"I had thought all humans were the same," he explained, "that they would just try to capture me and force me to battle, then abandon me when they realized I wasn't any good. No one was ever willing to do anything like that for me before. Everyone always only thought about themselves; doing anything to get their way no matter who they hurt. Even my own family. They left me in this forest to die." Blaze broke down. A hand reached out to pat him on the head.

"You're right." Rush said, "the world is full of people and Pokémon alike who will do anything to have their way. What do you say we change that world?" Blaze looked up at the human. "What if we made a world where nothing has to be sacrificed, and people fought for each other instead of themselves? What do you say? Want to help us with that?"

"Do you really think you can do that?" he asked the human.

He shrugged. "I think we should try. I think everyone should try. That's all that's needed to make it happen… People just need to realize that." He trailed off for a moment, but then turned back down to Blaze. "Sound like a good plan?"

The human's confidence was rubbing off on him, so much so that he actually thought he could do what he said, and he _did_ want to help, even if it was impossible. What was the harm? It was better than being stuck in the forest.

Blazed looked up at Rush and nodded, smiling.

"Alright then," Rush went on, lying down next to the fire. "Let's do all the formal stuff tomorrow, though. I, for one, am tired."

"You're one to talk. I fought off a dozen of those things." Anna said playfully, lying down next to Rush.

Blaze walked over to Rush and settled down by his other side, close to the fire. He quickly fell asleep listening to them banter back and forth, feeling truly safe for the first time in what felt like forever.


	2. Before We Begin

The next morning, Blaze woke with more energy than he could ever remember having. He felt charged up like a Jolteon, enough so to check to make sure he hadn't accidentally slept on a thunderstone and was still his brown-furred self. The future looked bright, and he felt like he had hope for the first time in a long time. Rush and Anna were still asleep, huddled close together by what remained of last night's fire. They seemed close – close in the way his old family had seemed in the beginning. A pang of dread passed through Blaze as he thought about the past, but he pushed it down. What was done was done. It was time to move on.

Blaze could also see spots of blood starting to soak through the bandages on the human's arm and he felt a little guilty.

Anna was the first Gardevoir the Eevee had met, so he guessed that she looked just like any other. She had her arms wrapped around Rush and her head on his chest looking like the happiest Pokémon in the world. If he hadn't known any better, he would have said the two looked like mates, but that was ridiculous.

Blazed then decided to look around their camp, but there wasn't much to find. There was one bag that the Eevee couldn't get open with his paws. He wondered if any of the Luxray from last night were still knocked out, but it looked like they had all run off. The only evidence of the quarrel left was the cracked tree trunks and gouges in the dirt. It still amazed him that one Pokémon had been able to do so much damage to an entire pack of those things.

Finding nothing else to do, Blaze sat back down by the two and waited patiently for them to wake up.

For about five minutes.

The Eevee quickly became hungry as his body fully woke up. The silence of the morning also put him on edge. He feared something similar to last night happening again, not trusting the forest in the slightest and the others being able to react fast enough. That tension, mixed with his boredom, made him want something to happen, anything. It wasn't long before he couldn't take it anymore.

"Come on already! You're wasting daylight!" he shouted.

Anna was standing in an instant, looking around as if they really were being attacked again. Rush wasn't far behind, springing to his feet and standing back-to-back with Anna. Soon realizing they weren't in any danger, the two relaxed and turned to Blaze.

"About time," he said, staring down their accusatory looks. "I feel like I've been waiting _forever_. So when's breakfast?" His tail wagged back and forth, eager to get his new life started, and leave the forest far behind.

Rush knelt down in front of Blaze. He did not look happy. "First rule," he said, "never do that again."

Blaze grinned sheepishly. "Not a morning person, then?"

Suddenly Anna was picking up Blaze and holding him to her chest. "Aaaah! You are just so cute!" she squealed, unable to control herself. Rush cleared his throat to snap her back to reality. Still holding him, she said, "Rush is right. You can't scare us like that, okay?"

The Eevee looked up at her, confused. "What? I just woke you guys up. What's the harm? I wouldn't want to sleep in this forest any more than I had to."

Anna put him back down and pet him on the head. "I'll explain later," she said.

The trio ate a quick breakfast, made sure their fire was thoroughly out and buried, and started getting ready to leave. The process did not take long as they didn't have much beyond Rush's one bag which he attached to his belt and tied around his leg, and soon they were on their way.

"Wait!" Rush said before they made it very far. "We forgot to make Blaze an official part of the family. Well, as official as we can make it out here."

Rush turned to face Blaze and cleared his throat, taking on an air of dramatism. "Blaze the Eevee!" he began, speaking in a dramatic tone, "I ask you one final time: do you wish to join us on our path of adventure throughout the world, fighting for justice, and occasionally just causing chaos for the hell of it?"

"Beats being stuck out here," Blaze responded, not really getting it.

Rush snapped open the top of his bag. Reaching in, he continued, "Then by the power invested in me as a trainer, I hereby welcome… you… to…" he trailed off, looking into his bag and rummaging through it.

"Um, problem," he said after a moment. "I don't have a pokeball."

Anna flicked Rush on the head and said, "Really? After all that?"

"Hey, supplies are your job," Rush retorted, "Why didn't you buy any?"

"When in the history of forever have you needed a pokeball before?"

"Right now," he stated.

She flicked him again.

So, wait," Blaze interrupted, "does this mean I can't come with you guys?"

"No," Rush assured him, "it just makes things a little more difficult. Anna, are Eevee on the list?" She nodded, and Rush spun on his heal to start walking again closing his bag as he did. "Then we can cross that bridge when we get to the Pokémon center," he finished.

Rush lead the way as the group continued in silence. Blaze noticed that Rush seemed to have a good sense of direction, not needing a map despite the fact that they followed no visible trail. Anna strode a pace behind him, almost seeming to float over the ground rather than walk on it. She hummed softly to herself as they went.

The young Eevee decided to ask her a question. "So what's your guys' story?"

Anna slowed her pace to match Blaze's, looking considerate for a moment. "A long one," she started, "but I suppose we have time. We're originally from Johto. Rush and I just arrived in Sinnoh a few days ago."

"That's a long way. What are you guys doing here?"

"You ever heard of Team Rocket?" Rush answered without turning to face them.

"No," Blaze answered honestly.

"Big group of bad guys," he explained quickly. "There have been rumors fled to this region after their main group broke up. We're working looking into it so we can get rid of them once and for all."

"Why's that?" Blaze questioned.

"Call it a personal mission." Rush stopped and looked up at the sky. "We've been up against them a while now. I don't want to say we're almost done but it sure looks that way. Any objections?" The question was directed at Blaze.

"Um, no," he told them, "But…"

"Yes?"

"I'm not much of fighter," the Eevee admitted.

Rush laughed. "That's fine. Anna's enough of a fighter for all three of us." He looked back to wink at her.

At that, Blaze perked up. "Right?! That was amazing last night! Well, some of it. I had no idea psychics were so strong!" Anna blushed at the Eevee's praise. "How long did you have to train to be able to do all of that?"

Anna scratched her cheek, refusing to look at the other Pokémon. "Oh, um, a while, I guess…"

"I mean you sent most of them flying, literally!"

"Anna's had a thing for fighting since she hatched," Rush interjected. "Don't let her fool you. She takes it very seriously. She's spent her life trying to get stronger."

"Gee thanks for making it sound like I'm some blood-thirsty animal," she snapped at him.

"Oh, you know it was a compliment."

"So you've been together awhile then?" Blaze asked.

"Her whole life; half mine," Rush answered. "You could say we're pretty close."

Blaze hesitated on his next question, but decided to satiate his curiosity. "So then, are you two mates? You looked like it while you were sleeping."

The two stopped, and Blaze questioned if he had, in fact, gone too far. Anna's face was now completely red and she looked like she was struggling to say something.

Rush turned to face him. Once again, his face was all serious intensity.

"And if we were?" he asked.

"Well, I'd think it's a little weird, but I don't really care, honestly. I was just curious."

At his response, Rush smirked, but said nothing more on the subject. Blaze decided not to push the issue.

The trio continued for the remainder of the morning, with Blaze asking more innocent and not-so-innocent questions along the way. Eventually, the tree line finally broke and Blaze stopped a moment to take it in.

Before them was nothing but open fields and a single road that went in the direction of a city that Blaze could just see the top of over the hills on the horizon. The Eevee was happier than words could express to finally be out of that hell. He felt like the worst part of his life was finally behind him.

Blaze realized that he had fallen behind Rush and Anna in his gawking and ran to catch up to his new family. He didn't look back.

.

It wasn't long before the buildings on the horizon were upon them. Blaze gazed up at them in wonder. He had never been in a city. It made him feel tiny, but also like he wanted to explore every inch of all the buildings. There were also so many other Pokémon and humans. They made him nervous, even though most didn't look his way. He stayed close to Rush and Anna. They continued through the city until they came upon a building Blaze recognized as a Pokémon Center.

"Welcome to the Hearthstone City Pokémon Center," the Nurse Joy at the counter said as they entered. "What can we help you with today?"

"I thought you agreed to go to the hospital first," Anna mentioned before Rush could answer.

He gave her a look then turned to the nurse and said, "A few things, actually. First I need to register this Eevee, but I haven't technically caught it yet."

The nurse looked at him confused. "Why not?"

Rush gave her an awkward smile. "I don't have any pokeballs."

"Well, sir, we don't supply pokeballs here. The PokeMart is just a few blocks away. I can give you directions if you'd like."

"Actually, I believe I should still have some unclaimed from when I registered as a trainer." Rush told her. He handed the nurse his pokedex and ID and she gave him a look, likely noting his age, before she slid it into a slot in the computer next to her.

"It says here you registered over ten years ago," Nurse Joy said. "Have you been running around with only one Pokémon this whole time?"

"Yup," Rush confirmed confidently.

She shook her head but made no further comment on the matter. "Here," she said. She reached under the counter and handed Rush a tray with five brand new pokeballs. "There should really be an expiration date on that deal," she said to herself.

"Okay, Blaze," Rush began, holding up one of the pokeballs, "I ask you once more, do you wish-"

"Skip the theatrics, please," Anna interrupted.

"Fine… killjoy." Rush reached down and tapped the ball against Blaze's head who disappeared into the ball. Then he pressed the button in the center and Blaze popped back into reality.

"Okay, next I'd like to get Blaze registered," Rush continued with Nurse Joy.

"Alright, here's the paperwork for that." She handed him a short stack of papers that Rush started to read and fill out.

"You can hop onto the counter little guy," she said to Blaze.

Blaze did as he was told with Anna's help and looked at Rush in confusion. He didn't remember this being a part of getting an owner. Once Rush was done looking through everything he handed the stack back to Nurse Joy who turned to Blaze. "Okay, Blaze?" she began.

"Yes?"

"Do you agree that you are entering the ownership of Rush Anderson under your own free will, that you are not under any form of duress, and that you are aware that you have the right to leave his possession whenever you please?" The nurse spoke the words at the pace of someone who had to say them a lot.

"I do?" Blaze questioned.

"You do indeed," Nurse Joy answered simply.

"Um, I guess?" Blaze responded still confused. "What's all of this about?"

"Just a formality," the nurse told him reaching under the counter again and pulling out a pad of ink. "I just need your print now."

Blaze didn't really get it still, but he placed his paw on the ink pad and then on the paper where the Nurse pointed.

"Alright, all done," Nurse Joy said putting the papers into a file. She then turned her attention back to Rush. "Would you like us to give him a checkup?"

"That would be great yeah. When I first found him he was pretty worse for wear."

"And your Gardevoir?" she asked, glancing at Anna

"I'm fine, thanks," she said, waving her off.

The nurse rang a bell and a Chansey came out of the back. The Pokémon reached out to try to pick up Blaze but he flinched away.

"Do I have to?" he argued.

"They're just going to scan you a bit to make sure you're alright." Rush told him. "There's nothing to be scared of."

"I don't trust them," Blaze countered, dodging the Chansey's grasp again.

"You trust me right?" Rush asked him and Blaze nodded. "Well, I trust them. You'll be fine."

Blaze finally submitted and let the Chansey pick him up and carry him off into the back.

"This should only be a little while, you can wait in the lobby if you'd like."

"One more thing," Rush said, "Where's the nearest hospital? I got a bit roughed up myself." He held up his bandaged arm.

"Of course, just let me pull up the directions. I can send them straight to your Poketch, if that's okay?"

"Really?" Rush said, looking at the tiny screen on his wrist. "I knew this thing would come in handy."

"She just as easily could put them on your phone," Anna argued.

Rush put a hand to his mouth so Anna couldn't see what he was saying, "She thinks it was a waste of money," he whispered to Nurse Joy.

"It _is_ a waste of money." Anna gave Rush a shove.

Nurse Joy giggled at the two of them. "You two sound like an old married couple," she remarked. "Have you been together long?"

"Practically our whole lives," Rush told her. "She's my family."

"Not your whole family," she reminded him grabbing his arm. "We have a new member now."

"I guess you're right. It's kind of like we have a kid now."

"Oh _please_ don't put it like that."

The nurse coughed, breaking Rush and Anna out of their own little world and they let go of each other.

"Here are the directions," she said with one final keystroke. Then she bowed and smiled at them. "I suppose I'll see you in a bit."

.

"So," the doctor said as he sewed up the worst of the cuts on Rush's arm. "What made you think it was a good idea to go against a Luxray's shadow claw? The Pokémon in that forest are no push-overs, you know?"

Rush gave him an apologetic grin. "Protecting the small and innocent?" he tried.

The doctor shook his head and went back to work. When he was finished, he rewrapped the cuts and told him, "Let's leave the battling to Pokémon, shall we?"

After Rush was fixed up, the duo made their way back to the Pokémon Center. The nurse, who seemed slightly agitated for some reason, told them that Blaze would still be a minute so they sat down on a couch in the lobby. "So, once we're done I say we look for a hotel," Rush suggested.

Anna gave him a sidelong glance. "Don't you think we've spent enough money today? I mean, another night camping out doesn't exactly sound appealing, but we do have a budget, and now we have three to think about."

Rush leaned back and put his arms on the top of the sofa, considering their options. "I think we'll be fine. Plus, I've had my fill of excitement before we've even gotten started. I need a night of quiet."

Anna leaned her head on Rush and smiled. "You're right," She said, "a quiet night sounds good."

"Speaking of drama," Rush started as his eyes went to the TV across from them. He pointed Anna to the screen as news announcer began a live story.

"This just in: there have been reports of protesting outside of the New Dawn, a rather infamous local café known for their open doors policy, accepting humans and Pokémon from all walks of life and treating them all as equals. This and many places like it have sprung up all over the region in the wake of the Recognition of Sentience laws, and the response to it has been mixed." The news showed on the screen a small building that had many people standing out front holding signs that said things like 'animals are not people' or 'why should my pet be allowed to vote?' It was not an unfamiliar scene those days. There were many people who opposed the new laws: laws that recognized that most Pokémon, like Blaze or Anna, are just as intelligent as humans and therefore granted them similar rights.

"Our sources have told us that there hasn't been any sign of rioting or violence, however police are on the scene, not wanting to take any chances with things getting worse."

"So I guess they have the same problems in this neck of the woods too," Rush commented as the reporter went to interview the protestors. He tuned out that nonsense. "Even after they lost they're still at it. How can people still not see that there are Pokémon just as smart as them that deserve the same respect?"

"Maybe it's just too soon. Give it a few more months," Anna told him.

Rush shook his head. "No… that's not how human arrogance works." He leaned forward, getting lost in thought. "We've dedicated far too much of our energy to this façade that we're somehow superior to all other things; that we are somehow the end-all-be-all of the universe. It's ridiculous."

Rush continued to watch the TV for another minute then added, "'There once were Pokémon that became very close to humans. There once were humans and Pokémon that ate together at the same table. It was a time when there existed no differences to distinguish the two.'" He let out a breath. "So much our history is lost; buried to maintain a lie that should have never existed."

Anna was about to say something else, but the two noticed the Chansey return to the front, now wheeling a cart. "No matter," Rush concluded. "We have other priorities."

The two went up to the counter as Rush's name was called.

"Blaze has a clean bill of health," Nurse Joy said handing him Blaze's pokeball. "There were… a few complications though."

Next she handed him a piece of paper. Rush gaped at it.

"I thought check-ups were supposed to be free!" he almost shouted.

"They are," Nurse Joy confirmed, "for actively registered trainers. You haven't renewed your license in over 3 years."

"… Okay, sure, but _this much_?"

"He caused us a lot of trouble back there," she explained.

As the nurse said this, Rush pressed the button to release Blaze. As he materialized, he was all smiles and tail wags.

"What did you do?" Rush questioned him.

"Nothing!" he protested.

"He broke about a third of our examination equipment," the nurse chimed in. Rush's expression darkened.

"I can explain!" The Eevee shouted. "They were trying to stick this big spikey thing in me, so I fought them off and I hit some things and-"

Rush gave Blaze a very disappointed look, "Didn't I tell you to trust them?"

"Big. Scary. Spikey thing?" Blaze maintained.

"He was very uncooperative," the nurse continued. "I hope there will be no issues paying for this?"

"No, I can, I just…" Rush took a second to gather his thoughts before continuing, "Blaze, we'll deal with this later." He put him back into the pokeball. He then turned to Anna, "Let's just go find place to stay before something else happens." Anna nodded and Rush turned back to Nurse Joy. He tried to soften his expression. "Is it possible we can set up a payment plan?" he asked.

She gave them a look that was answer enough.

.

"Rush, calm down," Anna said as she chased Rush through the city streets. Rush was practically running with how fast he was going. "Blaze is fine, and it's just money."

"I know that. I'm not mad, at least not at that," Rush told her.

"Then what are you mad about?" she questioned.

"I don't know, it's just… I don't want people breathing down my neck about this. We both know they're just looking for an excuse to pull the plug on us, and sending them that kind of bill before we even get started is sure to give them some ammunition."

"You're right, but we can deal with that when and _if_ it happens. I also agree we should discuss Blaze's trust issues with him, but there's no reason to get worked up."

Rush thought for a moment then ran a hand through his hair. "You're right," he said. "I guess that news story just got to me. Let's just find a hotel, and waste the rest of this day doing mindless things and not have to deal with anymore weird stuff for a bit."

Just as Rush finished, the two rounded a corner an almost ran into a crowd that was gathered in front of one of the buildings. Rush looked about in confusion.

"Have the protests spread all the way out here?" he asked himself.

Anna pulled his sleeve. "I don't think these are protesters…"

Rush looked down at her. She was staring up at one of the buildings. Rush followed her gaze and cursed.

A figure was standing in an open window a good twenty stories above them. Suddenly the crowd took on a completely different meaning in his mind. They thought he is going to jump.

"Looks like excitement just loves us today," Rush said.


	3. Pete

"Anna?" Rush began.

"Getting us up there."

Anna placed a hand on Rush's shoulder and in the blink of an eye they went from being on the street corner to being in the middle of a maze of cubicles. The whole place looked under construction. There were no tiles in the drop ceilings; cables hung from haphazardly. There was plastic covering some of the walls and rolls of insulation scattered about the floor. Anna pointed to a door to their right.

"Through there," she told him and Rush went for the handle.

The room beyond was full of office furniture underneath clear plastic tarps. Some of the walls had boards of the frame exposed where sheetrock that was still in stacks had yet to be put up and there were construction tools and supplies stacked in various places in the room. Rush concluded that the building was undergoing some form of repair or renovation. A story was starting to form in his head of an office worker falling on hard times or some similar scenario.

There were several panes of glass missing from the windows, and standing in one was the figure they saw from below.

Closer now, Rush could see that it was a man about as tall as him with brown hair down to his neck tied in a ponytail. He was dressed like he had just come out of a business meeting with a light pink dress shirt and dark suit pants. Rush could see from where he stood that his shoulders shook with tears. He wobbled back and forth, leaning slightly on one of the metal bars between the windows for support.

"Make sure I don't spook him," he told Anna quietly.

"I don't think you'll need my help with that," she responded. It peaked Rush's curiosity. What had she seen that he hadn't? Either way, he trusted her.

Collecting himself, Rush tried talking to the man. "Hey, what'cha doing up here?"

The man in the window seemed to not hear him. Rush took another step forward and said, "My name's Rush. You?"

There was still no response from the man. Rush got close enough that if he needed to pull him back he could and tried one more time. "You feeling alright buddy?"

Rush could now see that the man was at least a couple years younger than himself. He was staring down at the street, his eyes red from tears. He almost looked like he was smiling for some reason.

Finally he spoke, his voice hoarse and his words slurred. "It's so high up," he said.

"Yeah ,it is," Rush agreed. He started to reach out to try to pull him back in. "You know, you should really come back inside."

The man swatted Rush's hand away as he started to flail.

"No!" he shouted, "I can't go back. It hurts too much. No more." He started to lean forward. "No more…"

The man let the rest of his weight go and he started to fall. Rush caught him by the collar of his shirt before his feet left the floor and pulled him back as hard as he could. The man landed on his back in the middle of the floor and let out a groan.

"He's definitely on something. Can you tell what?" Rush asked.

"Heroine," Anna told him. "Want me to sober him up?"

Rush nodded and Anna flicked her wrist. The man lurched to his feet like a marionette and flew to one of the walls. With his back was pressed up against it, Anna walked up and put one hand on his head and the other on his chest.

"This is going to hurt," she warned.

Before the man could voice his defiance, Anna's hands lit up with psychic energy and the man began to scream. As he moaned in agony, Anna slowly lifted her hands away from him and with them came drops of amber liquid.

After a minute she was finished. She let the liquid drop to the floor and the man slid down soon after, panting as if he had been under water for ten minutes.

Rush gave the man a second then said, "Feeling better?"

The man, as if finally realizing he wasn't alone in the room looked up at Rush in surprise and anger. "What the fuck did you do to me?" he hissed. He looked like he had just gone through fifteen rounds against a Hitmonchan. He was soaked in sweat and his eyes were even more bloodshot than before. Rush was still less worried for him now than he was a second ago.

"Just sobered you up," he told him. "So, let's try again. I'm Rush and this is Anna. What's your name?"

Rush tried his best to sound soothing and friendly, but the man was having none of it. "Fuck off!" he yelled at Rush, "Who asked you to do anything?" The man started to sob. "I can't take this shit anymore. Why can't people just leave me alone?"

Rush decided to try a different approach. "I don't know what you've been through, but whatever it is it's no reason to kill yourself."

The man laughed. "You know how many people have said that to me? Empty words all of them. You all act like you know what's better for me than I do. Well to hell with that! You can all just go fucking die yourselves! You have no idea what it feels like to live in pain constantly."

Rush looked the man in the eye, trying to take the measure of his anger, find out where it came from, and then nodded. "You're right," he said, "I can never know what you've been through, not really. But why not try and explain it to me anyway? We have about five minutes before the police that stormed this building as I pulled you out of that window make it up here. If I think your story is good enough, I'll let you walk back to that widow and do what you came here to do."

The man looked at him, confused. "Is that some kind of joke? And I don't need to explain anything to you. Just mind your own damn business."

Rush wait for a moment then sighed. He sat down in front of the man and said "Well, if you won't tell me your story, I'll tell you mine." The man didn't seem ready to interrupt him, so he went on.

"My parents were killed when I was ten," he began. An organized crime syndicate known as Team Rocket attacked the building they were doing research in. They wanted what they were working on. I was in the building that day taking part in a program for kids getting ready to become trainers.

"It was our last day. We were in the middle of taking our final test when the whole building started to shake. A siren goes off a second later and then the teacher is yelling at us to get under our desks. I was told later that a bomb had gone off some ten stories above us, sending the building into lockdown. We were barely able to move before the door bursts open and men in black suits came flooding in.

"We were held hostage. Guns held to our heads. Can you believe that? Guns. Our teacher tried to bargain with them and they killed her for it. They told us over and over again not to move and they'd let us go. We were too scared to move anyway.

"For three hours we sat in that room with our hands on our heads. I know because I counted every second of it, staring down the barrel of the rifle pointed at me. And then, they all just ran out of the room. We sat there unsure what to do, should we run? Are they coming back? Are the police coming to get us? All I could think about was wanting my mom and dad.

"I had just worked up the courage to look out into the hall when the building started to shake again. This time much harder. The walls around us started cracking, windows shattered. I remember shards flying out and hitting people. I can still see some of their faces. Then the ceiling fell."

Rush took a breath, then continued.

"Fifteen stories fell on me that day – a metric fuck-ton of steel and concrete. When they dug me out of there almost a day later, the doctors said I was lucky to be alive. They also said I'd never walk again. For two years I just wanted the pain to stop – the pain of living in this world, the pain in my back from that day. Anna here was the only thing that kept me going. For those two years all I thought about was how wrong the world was. But then I got the motivation to fix it. It came in the form of an experimental procedure to try to fix my back. Doctors said it was sure to work. It didn't.

"For two and a half minutes I got my wish. The doctors had called my death at eleven forty eight that night after six and a half hours of surgery. Then Anna went berserk. She fought her way into the surgery room and tried to save me. I wouldn't be here if not for her, in more ways than one.

"That day I chose to fight to fix this broken world. And I've been fighting for it ever since. There's just one problem: my back is slowly leaking spinal fluid. No fault of Anna's or the doctors. There simply wasn't enough of my back left to fix it completely, and you can bet that hurts a lot and hurts constantly. Anna helps with that too, without even thinking about it most of the time." Rush paused to glance over at her. She looked away, her face turning red.

"So I have limited time frame," he finished, "then I'm back in a wheelchair forever and nothing will fix it short of a new spine."

The man, who had listened to Rush's whole story with little reaction, remained silent once he was done. Rush noticed the look of hatred and anger had left his eyes. Then his tears began to fall again and he laughed.

"Fuck, man. Compared to you my life seems like a god-send. You probably wouldn't even think I had a problem."

"No," Rush told him, gaining his attention again. "Your problems are no less than mine and just as real. Regardless of where it comes from, that pit we end up in is the same. And it doesn't matter if it's a building falling on you or a bad break up or whatever else, the way it makes us feel is just as serious. So I know you're up here for what you believe to be a good reason. But the answer you think you found is wrong and you'll realize that one day if you just keep trying, because I may not know anything about you, but I've been at the same finish line, and I know how to start again."

The man's rage had returned, but Rush knew it was directed elsewhere this time. It wasn't him he was mad at, but himself.

"How?" he pleaded to Rush. "It's all so messed up now… I don't know what to do, where to go. How can I simply try again?"

"You don't simply," Rush told him. "There is no simple, and I can't answer those questions for you. What you're looking for you need to find for yourself. And it will not be easy." Rush made a decision in that moment. He stood back up and held his hand out to the man. "But I can help, if you're willing to let me."

The man looked at Rush's outstretched hand. Rush thought about how much of himself he saw in that face and about his own future. Did he really have it in him to face the pain again? He looked at the window suddenly unsure of what he wanted at all. But he had already started, and he would see it done, one way or another. It was too late to back out now.

The man looked to be having similar thoughts himself, but whatever he decided in that moment was for himself. It needed to be, otherwise he'd never be able to get back on his feet.

In the end, whatever he had decided, he slowly took Rush's hand and he pulled him to his feet. He quickly lost his footing. It was to be expected after what he had went through. Rush caught him and threw his arm over his shoulder. "There we go," Rush said and he started to walk through the door. "I still didn't catch your name."

"Pete," the man said weakly.

Rush smiled. "Nice to meet you, Pete."

.

The police had made it about halfway up the building by the time Rush started making his way down to them, and after a moment of determining that there was no threat to them or to Pete they took him and put him on a stretcher to carry him the rest of way. Rush stuck close to make sure nothing else happened. Once outside, they loaded Pete into an ambulance. The police outside were struggling to keep the now enormous crowd at bay.

One of the officers approached Rush and Anna. "Do you mind explaining what the hell the two of you were doing up there?" he asked.

"Well, I think this is hardly the place," Rush told him, "but you could see what he was trying to do and I was trying to stop him."

"How did you get into the building?"

Rush pointed to Anna. "Psychics. Very useful. I've tried to convince several law enforcement branches to utilize them more, but they never listen. Too expensive to train, according to them."

The officer was not amused by Rush's attempt at humor. He reached for the hand cuffs on his belt. "Sir, I'm going have to ask you come with us back to the police station."

"No, I'm going to the hospital with him." Rush reached for his own belt and handed the officer a wallet. The man opened it and his eyes went wide. "I'm with the Interregional Investigation Bureau," Rush told him, "and from this point forth that kid is under my supervision."


End file.
